Guide to Being 26 Weeks Pregnant

Believe it or not, week 26 is still on the light side, symptom-wise. Before you get to the truly waddling exhaustion of trimester three, you may want to deal with a few physical matters, such as furniture assembly, nursery decorating and shopping for the items you'll need from day one.

Do keep in mind, though, that your balance is not what it once was, and you shouldn't be doing the heavy lifting. Bring your partner in for that, and share some thoughts and fears of parenthood while you work together. Bonding will only become more important as you near the big day.

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Also this week, make some headway in car seat research, since you should install that sometime in the next six weeks, and consider your plans for child care, if that's something you'll need. It can take a while to find the right situation.

Finally, start thinking about whether you'll bank the cord blood. You need to make that decision before your labor starts, since there's planning involved. Talk to your doctor, who will probably be able to educate or advise you -- or at least provide some informative literature.